My FirstGrade Romance
by foxtrotelly
Summary: Long before Mikan and Natsume shared their first kiss, or years before Hotaru snapped a good deal of blackmail photos, or even a while back before Ruka gave in to the words 'Just kiss the girl and stop wasting your time,' they stepped into the story.
1. Hotaru's Story

Here's a 4-chappie brought to you by Foxtrotelly. (plus 1 for the Author's Note at the end of the story) Enjoy! :D

**Disclaimer: **The author rightfully respects the copyright properties of Higuchi Tachibana-sensei because she doesn't have any money to pay for a plagierism lawsuit.

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_"Man, Cool Blue Sky is such a mouthful, can't I call you CBS instead, Cool Blue Sky?" _

_-Ryumi Tamara_

"Cool Blue Sky, wait up!" A sandy-haired boy called after a pale raven-haired girl who was quickly walking away.

The girl ignored this boy, and continued to walk over to her destination – home.

"Hey! I said slow down Cool Blue Sky!" The boy called after her again, still persistent.

He was surprised when the girl suddenly spun around with a vacant expression on her face.

"Call me that again and your face would be meeting the cold, hard pellets of my Puppet Blaster," said Hotaru callously to him.

"A-all right then…" the boy lowered his gaze as his face turned a bright pink color.

Hotaru turned and started walking again, only to be greeted by the words, "Man, Cool Blue Sky is such a mouthful, can't I call you CBS instead, Cool Blue Sky?" a few seconds later.

Oh, he asked for it.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

Little Ryumi Tamara was just like any ordinary seven year-old boy as one would say; loud-mouthed, rowdy, bursting with pure energetic goodness, and most of all, addicted to his weekly dose of Saturday morning cartoons.

_Beautiful Soldiers: Five Colors _aired every Saturday morning at 8:30, and whenever Ryumi would sit down in front of the television with his favorite bowl of cereal to watch this all the way from the first few notes of the catchy intro to the very last words of the credit roll despite his mother's numerous rants about eye damage and obesity, he couldn't ask for anything more in his seven year-old life.

And of all the _Five Colors_, his favorite character was the cool and spunky leader, Cool Blue Sky.

He broke records when he was able to complete his _Five Colors_ collection at the age of six and three quarters and after accomplishing many feats from snagging the exclusive autographed shirt to throwing a huge tantrum just to cut in front of some guy named Hayate when the tickets to _Beautiful Girls: Five Colors on Ice _were about to be sold out. Yes, little Ryumi Tamara assumed he was the biggest fan ever.

…That is, until he met Hotaru Imai – the epitome of pure awesomeness.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

While walking back home, Hotaru couldn't help but think how things could have gone so wrong just two weeks after moving to this village.

She always kept a low-profile around everybody else, but when this random idiot comes to her swearing his utmost loyalty to her, she knew things weren't right in this town.

What was his name…?

Oh, Ryumi "Baka" Tamara. Yet another annoying pest, right.

And then she suddenly remembered the first time she ever laid her eyes on the idiot.

The time when she attended her first day of school in this new town, just two weeks ago, in high hopes of finding a real friend in this school out of the sea of strangers, she saw Ryumi Tamara sitting on a swing. At first, he seemed like a pretty decent boy to Hotaru when she saw him in quiet-mode, contrasting greatly with the hooligans and morons running loose all around her.

But then, they locked eyes, and little Ryumi looked like he was going to have a heart attack and fell of the swing – and so Hotaru thought otherwise.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

"All right kids, why don't you go pick out your partners for next week's field trip?" Yuuki-sensei, a young and warm soft-faced lady announced to her first grade class.

Of all things, Hotaru really hated the idea of the buddy system. She guessed it came after broken screwdrivers and before diarrhea, just in between the painful sensation you get when you stick your wet fingers into an electrical outlet during a lightning storm and the strange and sickly feeling of stepping into a mound of fresh dog poo.

Anyhow, she had three reasons why she hated it too. One, she usually gets stuck with the kid who likes to wipe their boogers on the front page of their math books. Two, she doesn't have that much friends. Three, she was bound to get stuck with Ryumi Tamara, another friendless equal who does nothing but annoy and pester her all day long.

Hotaru didn't even notice when all her classmates stood up and rushed over to their best friends' side because she was too busy concocting excuses that could get her out of the field trip. Her thoughts, however, were interrupted when Yuuki-sensei placed a hand on her shoulder and said, "Why don't you go with Ryumi, since you're the only two kids who haven't picked a partner yet. Now, wouldn't that be nice?" just when she was deciding between a common cold or taking out her duck mobile for a test ride.

The raven-haired seven year-old froze. She felt Ryumi's manic ear-to-ear smile bearing into her skull.

"Wouldn't that be great CBS? Now we get to be partners!" Ryumi squealed with delight from across the room.

Hotaru just wanted to shoot him with her Stupid-Germ Vaporizer.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

For one, Hotaru Imai couldn't allow any of this to happen.

It all started when her parents were able to force her out of the house because her Turtle Shell Shelter failed her. And the bad luck just kept on coming…

That's when she declared this day as the worst day of her life – so far.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

"…and we could see the giraffes together, and then after that we could buy sweet potatoes together, and then after that, we could go cloud-watching together, and then after that we could get our feet wet by the creek together, and then after that…" Ryumi chattered on as the bus rumbled to stop near the 37th pedestrian lane on the way.

Yes, Hotaru kept count.

But why did she have to get stuck with this blabbering idiot on the day she forgot to pack her earplugs and soundproof Ladybug Helmet, anyway?

That's right, she didn't have any friends, and Ryumi didn't have any either.

Hotaru closed her eyes and tried to cover her ears by cupping her hands over them, something Ryumi didn't notice.

"…the monkeys are always so cheeky, so we could see them together too…" the sandy-haired boy of seven and a quarter smiled hugely while he carelessly swung his feet despite the many water canteens and backpacks it sent toppling over.

These were the times when Hotaru just wished she could escape on her Bunny Hopper and shoot away at all the nincompoops in plain sight without getting a time out.

"…on second thought, fishing isn't so bad either right? I wanna do that together too! And then after that, we could feed the fish to the seals in the zoo, and then after that…" Ryumi continued, apparently still not out of breath.

Couldn't this kid ever shut up?

And before Hotaru could know it, her eyelids drooped and she dozed off, even amidst the noisy chatter of all the kids in the bus and the queasy feeling the bus' motion gave her.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

Hotaru immediately woke up when she felt something warm and soft touch her hand.

"Cool Blue Sky, it's time to wake up. We're here!"

Hotaru's eyes fluttered open, and her amethyst eyes met with Ryumi's piercing green eyes as his face inched closer to hers.

"I'm awake you idiot," Hotaru said bluntly, pushing his face away from her with her tiny hand.

"Oww… Oh ok then, let's get going, the other kids already left the bus, and Yuuki-sensei is waiting for us outside," Ryumi beamed.

Hotaru looked outside the window and took note of the unfamiliar surroundings.

They were parked beside a few cars and a bus while behind them was a thick forest with towering maples, oaks, and sakuras in lovely orange, auburn, yellow, and red hues in time for autumn.

Ryumi jumped up from his seat and grabbed Hotaru's hand. He pulled her out the bus and they hopped from bus steps on Ryumi's signal.

The scent of fresh rainwater and fragrant wildflowers filled Hotaru's senses. She inhaled deeply, hoping to get all of this nature into her system by the end of the day. From beside her, Ryumi looked at her intently and did the same.

Hotaru noticed this and glowered at him, "Never ever hold my hand like that ever," she said coldly as she pulled away from Ryumi's grip.

Hotaru walked away towards a waving Yuuki-sensei, unaware of the smile on Ryumi's face vanishing.

"C-cool – H-Hotaru wait for m-me!" Ryumi called out to her.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

By noon, the students were already sitting under the shade of a big maple, eating their lunch after a busy morning of visiting the butterfly garden, dropping by the ostrich sanctuary and a detour by the turkey coops.

"Minna-chan, right after lunch, we would be paying a visit to the petting zoo," Yuuki-sensei paused to entertain numerous cheers from the first-graders, "and then afterwards, we would be saying hi to the local bears," some 'oohs' and 'ahs' were heard, "but be careful not to upset them, ok?" Yuuki-sensei's voice dropped to a hushed tone, leaving the students suddenly dead silent, "Or they might come up and eat you! Rawr!" she suddenly roared, leaving everyone screaming except for Hotaru, who stayed emotionless.

Yuuki-sensei laughed, her wavy ebony hair easily sliding through her shoulders as she held her head back.

"Nah, I was just messing with the lot of you," she warmly smiled at her class, which instantly giggled at their own overreaction.

A girl in braids shot her hand in the air.

"Yes, Midori?"

"Yuuki-sensei, when do we gets to see the big swimming pool?" Midori chimed.

"It's not a pool my dear, it's a creek," Yuuki-sensei chuckled, "and we'll be visiting that by the end of the day so that we could all watch the sunset together while enjoying our late afternoon snacks. Now, isn't that just wonderful?"

"Hooray!"

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

The gate to the petting zoo creaked as it was opened to let in a class of thirty first-graders, twenty nine of them squealing their heads of while they ran over to the bunnies and guinea pigs. Hotaru followed closely behind, rolling her eyes.

"All right everyone, don't hold the baby guinea pigs and hamsters too much, or their parents might eat them up, ok?" Yuuki-sensei told her class as if this weren't such a disturbing truth about most rodents. Hotaru shuddered at the thought, but her classmates didn't seem to be listening at all.

"Cool Blue Sky, over here!" Ryumi waved an arm to catch Hotaru's attention. The raven-haired girl pretended to not see him, and attempted to distance herself from her partner as much as possible, but was quickly spotted by Yuuki-sensei who with great difficulty steered her towards Ryumi, now sitting beside a family of guinea pigs.

"Cool Blue Sky look over here! Look at them, they're so cute!" Ryumi yelped in adoration.

"Aww, now isn't that cute Ryumi! Have fun you guys!" Yuuki-sensei sang and traipsed away.

Ryumi handed a chubby, brown and gray spotted guinea pig to Hotaru and said, "This is Chichiri, Hotaru, and he's very pleased to meet you."

Hotaru indifferently eyed the fat guinea pig in her hands. She wasn't very interested in petting rats, but she wasn't quite disgusted to drop it right there and then either.

"Did you know, Chichiri was my first-ever friend?" Ryumi's tone suddenly turned into a solemn one. Hotaru pretended not to listen and continued in rigidly stroking Chichiri's back.

"He was the first guinea pig I picked up when I first came here, and I could remember he was the only baby with brown and gray spots all over him – the only brown and gray spotted runt in fact," Ryumi looked at Chichiri sadly.

He continued, "Did you know I was sort of like a runt when I was born? And usually, when guinea pigs are born runts, their parents often abandon them and leave them to die. I know Mama never abandoned me, but maybe that's why Papa left, because I was a runt." Hotaru heard Ryumi's voice breaking, and from the corner of her eyes, she could clearly see Ryumi's green eyes turning somewhat glassy.

Hotaru petted Chichiri's belly, then handed him to Ryumi, who quickly wiped away his tears. Hotaru pretended not to see, and let Ryumi talk some more.

"It was my fifth birthday when it was my first time here. It was just supposed to be me, Mama, and Papa, but then… Mama told me Papa couldn't come, and she ended up buying me this big elephant balloon because she says we could still have a good time even without Papa… And we did," Ryumi cradled Chichiri closer to his chest, eyes closed.

Hotaru felt sorry for Ryumi a great deal all of a sudden. She never came from a broken family, and she was sure her parents loved her a lot. So maybe, just maybe, it was ok to let Ryumi share his feelings, even if he did all the talking.

"During the next few months, I tried calling Papa, but this weird robot voice would always pick up. I tried leaving him messages, but he'd never call back. And then this one time, a woman named Rachel yelled at me for bothering Papa too much… That was the last time I ever heard from Papa." Ryumi stopped talking, then he put down Chichiri to pick up another black guinea pig.

This time, Hotaru allowed herself to look at Ryumi straight in the face. Their eyes met, and Hotaru gave Ryumi a small smile before quickly turning her head away again.

"I'm glad to see you doing well buddy. This must be your very good friend, since you stick together so much," Ryumi affectionately pet the black guinea pig in his hand, "And these must be your babies, it's a pleasure to meet them." He grinned widely.

"Do you knowwho my second friend is?" Ryumi gazed over at Chichiri, who was nipping on some pellets, "Her name's Hotaru, Hotaru Imai, and she makes me so happy."

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

After the first-graders visited the grizzly bears, and went over to the souvenir shop, they began trekking on a narrow ten-minute walk lined with gold and red maples that were now starting to shed a few of its leaves. The sky was a crisp blue and the sun shone brightly in the west point of the sky, almost ready for sundown. Although the wind was quickly picking up, the children had their coats, so Yuuki-sensei had nothing to worry about.

All the while, Hotaru walked silently beside Ryumi, still thinking of the things he said awhile ago.

Ryumi quieted down a bit during their last minutes in the petting zoo, only speaking to utter a word or two to Chichiri, his newfound companion Kylie, and their babies Shelly, Liz, and Julio. That was two hours ago, however.

Now, his voice echoed throughout the calm woods, along with the excited chatter of the other twenty-eight.

"And we can go fishing, and then we can go watch the sky set on fire! Isn't that cool, Cool Blue Sky? Oooh, I said 'cool, Cool Blue Sky'! Ah, I crack myself up. Wasn't that funny, CBS?" Ryumi babbled non-stop, but Hotaru was still under the effect of his words awhile ago, and she wasn't the least bit annoyed – yet.

The auburn-hued leaves crunched under their feet as they trudged up a gentle slope. So far, nobody was complaining yet, though a thin layer of sheen shone on the foreheads of all the first-graders while Yuuki-sensei simply ambled on, all smiles.

After a minute or so of walking and senseless excited prattle from the horde of seven year-olds, their teacher came to a stop right in front of a clearing partially blocked out of view by a few shrubs.

Ryumi, who was lagging behind, bumped into Hotaru's back when she suddenly stopped walking.

"Kids, we're here!"

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

Hotaru watched the water slosh softly against the mildewed pier legs. It was almost sundown, and Ryumi had taken it to action that he eats a mandarin by the time "the sky turns an orangey-pink color and sets on fire". The ice-cold raven haired girl beside him rolled her eyes at the thought.

It seemed sudden, but pink streaks randomly painted themselves on the red-orange canvas, almost by magic. Several kids 'wowed' in amazement at the sight of this, while Hotaru simply sighed over something she missed greatly.

She could still picture it clearly in her mind, the day she left that little village by the sea. Leaving that place felt like leaving behind a fairly huge chunk of your heart behind, not only because she was leaving her quaint seaside home where she spent hours on end playing with the crabs – and sometimes offering them to her mother to cook for dinner, rather than playing with the other children, but also because the best thing she came to love about that place was its sunset – the absolutely magnificent sunset.

The gigantic glowing ball of fire slowly being swallowed by the blue-green waters and the fascinating movement of the birds migrating south weren't enough to please Hotaru, since the sunset in her old seaside home was much better. She sighed again, but was still more careful in keeping her indifferent expression.

Ryumi sensed this, and worriedly said, "CBS, what's wrong?"

"Nothing." Hotaru looked away.

"But, your eyes look really sad. And my Mama says you could always read the way a person feels by looking at their eyes. I think she's right, what's wrong, Cool Blue Sky?" Ryumi inched closer towards Hotaru, who in turn glared at him with her surprisingly smoldering amethyst orbs.

"How many times do I have to tell you the name's not Cool Blue Sky?" she scowled at him despite the lump that started forming in her throat.

"Uh, I'm sorry, Hotaru," Ryumi hastily looked away and edged farther from Hotaru. His eyes looked glassy like before, making Hotaru somehow feel a twinge of guilt in her heart.

Hotaru took her gaze off of the sandy-haired boy and looked off into the sparkling blue-green water, set ablaze by the reflecting horizon.

"What do buildings look like?" Hotaru spontaneously asked, her eyes still on the view ahead.

"Huh?" Ryumi lifted his head and turned to look at Hotaru.

Hotaru took a bite from her rice cake and continued, "My parents say we have to move away again because if the men in black catch me, they'll take me to a place full of buildings, cars, weird people, and no trees."

Ryumi's eyes widened, "No trees?!"

"Not even a star at night," Hotaru muttered nonchalantly.

"What's nighttime when it doesn't even have any stars?!" the sandy-haired boy defiantly threw his hands up.

Hotaru paused, then opened her mouth to say something.

"It's ok if they take me away, just as long as they start leaving Mama and Papa alone."

Hotaru stared at Ryumi. This was some kid, she thought.

She knew he was different, and annoying to say the least, but she never felt that it was wrong to tell him any of her secrets.

Hotaru smiled.

"Cool Blue Sky, do you know who my hero is?" Ryumi locked his gaze at Hotaru.

No reply.

"She's pretty and she's smart, that's why she's called Cool, and she's really mysterious and hard to reach, that's why she's called Blue Sky," Ryumi blushed and quickly reverted his eyes from Hotaru's questioning stare.

At once, Hotaru thought of the girl from the television show Ryumi adores so much. It was true that she really took after Cool Blue Sky, but it honestly disappointed her that the television girl was Ryumi's hero, and not her.

Ryumi swung his feet back and forth, as he leaned back on his hands and hummed a cheerful tune to himself. He tilted his head up and closed his eyes, a wide ear-to-ear grin painted on his face.

"And it's been really awesome to meet her in the flesh right now," Ryumi kept his head up, though Hotaru could easily detect the deep red blush on his cheeks.

Ryumi rested his hand on Hotaru's hand. Hotaru, meanwhile, looked at it blankly, but let it stay there.

She looked straight ahead at the breathtaking view.

Without her noticing, what was left of the huge fiery ball was sinking away to the depths of the creek. The trees lining the bank were now bathed in darkness, while the orange-tinged purple skies were now beginning to dot themselves with shimmering stars in time for twilight.

Hotaru thought the view back home was beyond replaceable, but figured this was a view worth watching. She had to admit those two sunsets were beautiful, but they were both wonderful in different ways.

Any minute now, and the sun would finally be gone to be replaced by the moon later on. Then, wordlessly, Hotaru gripped Ryumi's hand.

Ryumi froze, but eased up again as he held Hotaru's hand back and let his bright green eyes rest on the tiny smile forming on Hotaru's face.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

The weeks went by in pure bliss, making Hotaru forget all about her parents' plans of moving away again. Day by day, Hotaru saw it as a chance to know Ryumi better. Though it was true that the boy practically annoyed the living wits out of her, and though it was undeniable that he also got shot down often when he went over the top, Hotaru nonetheless came to love his irritating charms.

Things went well for quite a while – that is, until reality came hitting Hotaru in the face.

Moving was a terrible routine to Hotaru. It wasn't new to her, because the same thing happens when she moves away once every seven weeks or so.

With their bags all packed and a few of their bulky belongings left behind to avoid too much attention when they begin to travel someplace else, Hotaru's parents lock up the house and quickly take Hotaru by the hands once they're finished, a bag or two in each of their hands. Hotaru looks back to have a last glimpse of their home, seeing no friends who cry at the sight of her departure or a teary companion wishing her and her family good luck for whatever lies ahead. Though Hotaru feels this foreboding emptiness every time, this wasn't something new to her either.

But this time, things were different – and Hotaru thought she was so stupid to not notice.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

"Cool Blue Sky, wait up!" Ryumi panted. He was running towards Hotaru from a few meters away.

"Stop." Hotaru ordered. She wasn't so worried about using such a commanding tone because her parents were back at the house, packing up.

Ryumi stopped running, then cocked his head to the side, saying, "CBS, why didn't you tell me you were leaving today? Otherwise, I would've gotten ready for it."

"I didn't tell you because I didn't want you to make such a big fuss out of it," Hotaru brusquely told him.

"So you didn't plan on telling me because you wanted to leave without saying goodbye?!" Ryumi hollered at her as he shook his fists in the air.

"Yes." Hotaru replied coldly, trying hard to keep her smooth expression without giving in to the growing ache in her chest.

Ryumi's lower lip trembled, "I know you may be cruel, and even if you're mean, I ask just one thing, please…"

Hotaru raised an eyebrow. Ryumi was sweating despite the bitter wind, while Hotaru slightly shivered, burrowing her mittened hands deeper into her winter parka.

"I… My Mama says life can be compared to the weather," Ryumi's voice quavered, "It can rain on parades, parties, and some many more stuff. The sun can shine when we're happy. Rainbows appear because God wants to fill our lives with color right after it's been turned gray. And all of it just repeats, over and over again until we learn to live by it," a single tear trickled down Ryumi's round cheek, "B-but most of a-all, though it all comes unexpectedly, what matters most are the moments when you take time to enjoy your personal sunshiney rainbows. Hotaru, please never forget to still save some space for me in your heart, or at least your memory, no matter what happens, and I'd always have a rainbow to smile about everyday."

Ryumi broke out sobbing.

And all of a sudden, Hotaru got this impulse to run over and hug him.

From behind Ryumi, Hotaru caught sight of her parents running towards her with bags in their hands.

Hotaru knew what she had to do.

She bent down and brushed away the thin sheet of snow blanketing the ground. She placed a small robot carrying a note in its hands then winded it and set it down on the snow.

Her parents reached her, and pulled her up by her hands.

"Hotaru-chan, let's go!" Hotaru's mother said, hastily pulling Hotaru's hood over her head.

The raven-haired seven year-old held on tightly to her parents' hands as they started to walk away quickly. Hotaru looked back one more time for a last glance at Ryumi, who was looking down at his feet, sobbing. His cheeks were burning pink, his windswept dirty blonde hair a bit damp from the snow.

"Come now Hotaru-chan, we'd better get going," Hotaru's father lightly tugged on his daughter.

Hotaru returned her gaze towards the direction they were walking towards, hastily blinking back the burning tears in her eyes. It hurt too much to look any further.

Then she inclined her head upwards, her tongue out to taste the very first snowfall when somebody has ever cried for her.

^_^ ^__^ ^_^

Before long, the three people walking away instantly vanished just like that. Ryumi squinted his eyes to get a good look, but caught sight of nothing. He knelt down and closed his eyes in grief.

He was aware that he had run out of tears, and couldn't cry any longer. He didn't even mind the cold, because it couldn't get any colder than this. His cheeks and nose were glowing red, and his lips were a windburnt dark purple, but he knew.

Ryumi knew he better get going or else his sickly Mama would go out looking for him in this cold weather, and was about to stand up when something small nudged his hand.

It was a little red robot that had a gleaming amethyst stone around its neck. The robot had a letter in its hand, Ryumi easily picking it out from the little robot's hands.

The seven year-old boy smoothed the crumpled paper and opened it.

Inside, in Hotaru's neat first-grader penmanship that was too nice to be a seven year-old's handwriting according to Yuuki-sensei, it read:

_I give you the power to invent your very own rainbow gun. P.S. Cool Blue Sky will never forget Ryumi "Baka" Tamara._

**~ FIN ~

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If you've ever read Ruka and Hotaru's story in my other story _How I Met Your Mother_, you'll see why what Hotaru said in the last part is true. I didn't reuse the name because it originally came to mind already that I'll use the name of Hotaru's early childhood sweetheart.

There it is you guys, the first story. :D Please be kind enough to leave me some feedback, 'kayy?


	2. Natsume's Story

Terribly sorry for the long wait guys, but as I promised, here it is. It's Natsume's story this time, enjoy reading it.

* * *

"_Don't you know that superglue can kill when used in the wrong place and at the wrong time?!"_

_- Suki Yamatori_

Spring – easily defined as; the time of cherry blossoms, the start of a new semester, and when a new kid transfers in.

Natsume sat under the shade of an almighty oak, his eyes carefully scrutinizing every kid that walked by. Transferees often moved in during the spring, and he didn't really feel like attending school on the day the new kid is asked to sit beside him because he's the only person in class without a seatmate.

The same old people walked by, headed towards the gates. They looked really happy, making Natsume think vaguely of how it would feel like to have a friend.

It wasn't that he was an anti-social freak or something, but it's just that his intense demeanor and gleaming crimson eyes sometimes give people the impression that he was plain weird…and scary.

The school bell rang, and all the students walking outside started running towards the door. Again Natsume didn't feel like going to school, but figured he had to since this was so much better than playing dollhouse with little Aoi.

And with that, Natsume grabbed his bag, sighed and trudged towards the school.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

"Class, today…" Mihara-sensei, a small and nervous man with glasses, spoke against the senseless blabber of his first-grade class.

Oh fudge, this didn't sound good.

"I have a very special announcement to make…"

Natsume felt like his gut was sending him a bad message.

"She came all the way from Tokyo…"

The seven year-old midnight haired boy squirmed uneasily in his spacious seat.

"I hope you'll all be nice to her and help her out…"

Natsume felt like punching himself for not noticing the new kid walking towards school awhile ago.

"Why don't you go sit there beside Natsume-kun?"

'Fudge balls' was what Natsume would most likely swear to himself.

Natsume twiddled his thumbs and didn't bother to look up at the new kid. Heck, he didn't even know if it was a he or she.

"Hey there, I'm Suki, and I'm new here. It's really nice to meet you, Natsume-kun," a high-pitched voice spoke from beside him.

Wait, Natsume paused, Suki was a girl's name right?

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

"Could you stop following me?" Natsume stopped walking to turn back and glare at the girl behind him.

"Look, Natsume-kun, Mihara-sensei said you're supposed to help me out and show me around, remember?" Suki bit out, her head tilting slightly to the side, making her russet ringlets spill over her shoulder.

"Lucky for you, I wasn't listening. Now get lost," said Natsume gruffly. He put his hands in his Capri pockets and resumed in walking.

"Fu, fu, fu, what a lousy sourpuss," Suki muttered to herself. She puffed her cheeks then playfully blew on her bangs as she watched Natsume walk away.

Then she took a bite from her apple and wiped it with her sleeve before throwing it at Natsume's head.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

"Now let me get the straight, Yamatori-chan threw an apple at your head," Kisono-sensei, the school principal, eyed Natsume through her square-framed spectacles, "And Hyuuga-kun set your dress on fire?" she looked over at Suki.

"Yes," the two children replied monotonously in unison.

"And was there any matchstick or apple present in sight?" Kisono-sensei asked skeptically.

"No."

"I guess not."

And with that, the school principal propped her head on her hand.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

Natsume was down to his last five _'I will not bring matchsticks to school'_ when Suki suddenly spoke up, "Hey, is apple spelled as 'A-P-P-E-L'?"

Natsume stopped writing, then ignored it and continued with looping out the O's in _school_.

"Or is school spelled with a K?"

This time, Natsume didn't look away from his side of the board, "Just when I thought you couldn't say anything more stupid, you just kept talking," he grumbled tediously as he started on his third-to-the-last sentence.

"Wha – So I've been spelling school and apple wrong all this time?!" Suki whined from the other side of the blackboard.

"That figures," Natsume smirked. He finished off the K in matchstick.

Natsume noticed that Suki quieted down for a while, figuring that she was taking some time to "process" the words in that mosquito-tiny brain of hers. The chalk Natsume was writing with broke in half when Suki suddenly poked her head from her side of the blackboard and made Natsume jerk a little.

"Now look what you made me do!"

"You're such a sourpuss, and you know that!" Suki wagged her finger at Natsume.

The midnight haired seven year-old rolled his crimson red eyes and continued writing. He was currently on his last sentence when Suki started to notice, "How the fudge did you write that fast?! I was just starting with my tenth _'I will not bring apples to school'_!"

"Done." Natsume lay the chalk down and walked over to the open window.

He was about to place a foot on the window sill when Suki exclaimed, "Hey, where are you going?!"

Natsume ignored this as he placed his whole body out the window and nimbly threw his self off the sill. He felt the wind rush through his falling form as he heard Suki's scream from inside the building. He landed lightly on the balls of his feet and took off.

"WAIT UP, YOU HAVEN'T TAUGHT ME HOW TO SPELL APPLE YET!" Suki hollered after him.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

Every morning, right before anyone was outside their homes, Natsume would make it a point to stop and sit under the shade of a certain oak a few meters away from school, on his way there.

A small white house stood in front of the tree ever since Natsume first moved in to that small town, and it's been unoccupied ever since. Some said it was haunted, but Natsume thought they were just plain stupid.

Resting under its fairly big shade did well for Natsume as it made him feel better and kept him away from the distractions of school life, his chatterbox classmates, and most of all, his Alice. When he sits under that tree, he also takes some time to study the pendant he's had around his neck ever since he could remember – it wasn't a colored pebble or a ruby, but something else completely different. Here, he also got to think of how he could protect his family in the near future and how he could keep Aoi away from the Academy as his mother had instructed him. And under its shade, he would think of Gakuen Alice, a nightmare just waiting to happen.

Then Natsume thinks of his mother, elusive and mysterious Kaoru, the cause of all his thinking and all of the mysteries he was left to answer; the pendant, his Alice, and Gakuen Alice.

He usually dozes off a bit, and then once again wakes up when he hears babbling and shuffling erupting from the early morning daze.

And with that, he gets up, dusts himself off, and walks towards school in time for the morning bell to ring.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

It was a usual Wednesday morning, and Natsume had just happened to leave home a little earlier than he usually did, leaving him some more time to rest under the oak.

As he sat down on the ground, he whiffed an unfamiliar fragrance. He looked around to find where the scent came from and gasped audibly when he saw the scene to his right.

In front of the oak was the quaint little house, now painted a lovely spring green, with white picket fences and a flowerbox in each of its four windowsills. In each of the window flowerboxes were freesias, magnolias, poppies, and many more foreign blossoms Natsume was sure didn't grow anywhere else. It had a simple square garden that grew bed rows of lilacs, honeysuckles, and narcissus. Lining the garden were round-trimmed shrubs with multi-colored buttercups while tulips blossomed scattered by the roots of an exquisite sakura tree in full bloom, branching out to the eastern second-floor window, parallel to the oak Natsume sat under every morning – very much mirage-like to him.

Natsume could've sworn the garden wasn't there yesterday, or at least all the mornings he's ever sat under the old oak tree. He squinted his eyes again, then rubbed them hard, but the garden remained. Natsume shifted in his position, until his eyelids drooped from watching the butterflies fluttering in the mysterious flower garden…

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

"Hey there, Panda-chan, you think Natsume-kun is such a jerkwad loser for leaving me behind yesterday afternoon, right?"

Natsume's eyes shot open. Who the?

"What the fudge are you doing up there?!" Natsume hollered at Suki who was now swinging her dangling legs from the sakura tree branch she was sitting on.

Suki ignored him, and continued to talk to the tattered stuffed toy in her hands. She held it up in front of her, and murmured, "The cat has awoken, let us spray him with a spray bottle to tame him."

And much to Natsume's surprise, the ragged doll in Suki's hands nodded. Suki snickered.

"You just get weirder by the minute don't you?" Natsume smirked. He got up, then dusted himself off. He was about to bend down to grab his school bag, but was quickly stopped when Suki said something.

"And could you tell me what's wrong with hanging out in my own backyard?" said Suki airily.

Natsume staggered backwards, "WHA - ?"

"You heard me."

Natsume's eyebrows furrowed, he always hated it when the hunters got hunted. However, he didn't let this go too far and kept his face smooth.

"Where'd you get the animated panda?" Natsume taunted her as he hitched his bag to his shoulder.

"From my wardmate," Suki coolly told him. She took her eyes off the panda then looked down at Natsume, her ash gray eyes blank.

"Since when have you been an ex-convict at age seven?" goaded Natsume, a look of smugness widespread on his face.

"Well, sort of. But they let me out because my ability was pretty much useless, and I was a waste of space in the ward," replied Suki rather gravely, meaning she didn't get Natsume's little joke.

Natsume didn't retort back, feeling like this was one of those moments where your inappropriate rejoinders were very unnecessary.

He was still really smart for a first-grader, though.

Natsume looked at her straight in the eye, and bit out, "Well, what CAN you do then?"

Suki narrowed her eyes, and said nothing. Natsume watched her crawl over to the trunk and slide down the tree with ease – even if she was in a skirt. Suki crossed her arms and leaned back against its thick woody trunk.

Suki plucked a leaf from a nearby shrub and held it in between her forefinger and thumb.

"This." Suki blew on the leaf, suddenly turning it into a dozen blood red rose petals in just a snap. Natsume's crimson eyes widened and followed the petals gently falling on the ground.

"Y-you're an Alice?"

"Well, Panda-chan says so, and whatever he says, I believe," Suki smiled at the stuffed panda in her hands, then set it down. The little panda wobbled a bit unsteadily on its paws, then got up on its hind legs and sat by Suki's feet.

"So the stupid thing really is alive huh?" Natsume sneered, glowering at the stuffed panda that was now playing with a little yellow butterfly.

"Yup, and Kaname-senpai made it especially for me," Suki said cheerfully.

Natsume didn't reply, because as far as he was concerned, he hated perky people.

"Hey, do you mind if I sit with you for awhile?" Suki softly muttered, her face turning a pleasing shade of pink.

"Hn." Natsume began to walk towards school.

"You say I'm weird, but you're the one who's going to school on a Saturday!" Suki remarked.

Natsume stopped dead in his tracks, he completely lost track of the date. He glared daggers at a sneering Suki.

"I guess Hyuuga Natsume has to sit with Yamatori Suki, huh? Score 2 for Suki, Natsume: 0," she smirked triumphantly.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

Natsume raised an eyebrow. Suki flashed a grin. Something was terribly, terribly, terribly wrong – Natsume could feel it punching at his gut.

"Happy Fifteen, Natsume!" Suki exclaimed, a wrapped package in her hands.

"Huh?"

"March 15th, Natsume, it's been a month since we first met!" she chirped brightly, her gray eyes sparkling as it locked with his glimmering red ones.

"I never knew monthsaries existed for friends…" said Natsume dully.

"Well, they do now!" Suki laughed, just like the sound of bubbling water rippling to the surface.

Natsume eyed the present in Suki's hands. It was wrapped in glittery purple kitty-printed wrapping paper. Great, she was trying to mock him.

He gave Suki a questioning look, and she responded by bobbing her head up and down, her copper-colored curls bouncing along with it. Suki handed Natsume the gift.

Natsume stared at it for a while, then proceeded to cautiously tearing off the annoying shimmery paper. Once he was done, he brushed off the remaining shreds of wrapping paper from the gift and held it up in front of him.

"A manga?"

"Yeah!"

"Why can't you just torture me by sealing all my breathing holes with superglue?" Natsume remarked dryly.

"Don't you know that superglue can kill when used in the wrong place and at the wrong time?!" Suki snapped, her every word dripping with sugary sardonic sweetness.

"Who knew bad sarcasm could kill too?" Natsume retorted derisively.

"Well – hey, where's my gift?"

"Did anyone tell me to get you one, Tsubaki?"

"Yeah, I told you yester – How dare you call me by my whole name!"

Natsume smirked, racking his brain for when Suki told him to buy her a gift for today.

"Hold on, I need a sec," Natsume muttered, as he drifted away to what he recalled from yesterday…

_ Suki looked up and held out her palm in time for a sakura petal to lightly fall on her hand. Natsume watched her before he started to walk away towards home._

_"Natsume…" she muttered quietly. Natsume froze. He turned around and faced Suki._

_"Could you get me a gift for tomorrow?" she smiled. _

_Natsume raised a brow, "What for?"_

_"Nothing, just, get me a gift. M'kay?" Suki's smile wavered, but she still beamed brightly nonetheless._

_"Whatever."_

Natsume snapped back to reality. Now he remembered. He figured it was best to get that gift before any other fruits hit his head by tomorrow.

Natsume got up.

"Hey, where are you going?" Suki asked.

"I'm going home. See ya," he said bleakly.

"Oh, okay. Read the manga, ok? It's not half-bad, and it won't kill your brain cells at the same time too," Suki added without facing Natsume.

"Unlike what it did to yours?" Natsume riposted as he leaped over the white fence.

"Just read it."

As he walked down the sidewalk, a few sakura petals fell gracefully and breezed through Suki's hunched figure on the grass.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

"I dunno Natsume, you know I don't read…" she said weakly.

"Lookie here, you got me a manga, I get you a book," said Natsume taunted sheepishly.

"_A Book on Flower Symbolism…" _Suki read the book title aloud.

Suki dubiously peered at the thing in her hands. On its cover, it had a picture of a geranium in Suki's favorite color, yellow.

"Oooh, now I know why you got me this book!" she squealed delightfully.

"And why's that?"

"Because the flower on the cover is yellow!" Suki concluded with glee, her finger shooting up in the air.

"I'd read the book to check what geraniums meant if I were you…" said Natsume bluntly.

Suki opened the book and flipped through the pages. Natsume watched her with wry amusement.

"Ah, found it," Suki declared after five minutes of searching through the book.

Natsume looked away from Suki and gazed off ahead at the sunrise.

A bright red orange light had just begun to seep through the deep cerulean horizon, signaling the end of dawn and the beginning of an early Saturday morning. From the distance, the sun, now a mellow yellow orange ball of fire peeped lazily from behind the far-off countryside grazing hills. A few stars twinkled vaguely as they started to get covered by fluffy white cumulus clouds – a good omen for fine weather.

A while after Natsume met Yamatori Tsubaki, he gave himself a good pat on the back for discovering that sunrises on her rooftop were silently beautiful, majestically magnificent on its own without the need of any showy lights or sounds.

Being distracted by the glorious daybreak, Natsume didn't even notice when Suki started reading aloud the symbolism on geraniums.

"…also symbolize stupidity and true friendship," Suki finished. Natsume looked at her, and she stared at him back with piercing gray eyes and a warm smile.

Suki looked off into the sunrise, letting the book rest on her lap for a while. A thoughtful silence surrounded them. Meanwhile, from the corner of his eye, he watched Suki carefully and noted the changes in her physical appearance.

During the past few days, he noticed that Suki had grown paler and thinner, her shoulders and knees looking bonier than before. She shook at the slightest breeze, and sometimes even failed to attend school for some unknown reason. Dark circles began to show under her eyes, while her once lustrous and bouncy copper ringlets were now small, limp curls that simply fell lifelessly to her shoulders.

"Natsume…" Suki muttered. Natsume, in reply, turned to look at Suki.

Her smile wavered, and her eyebrow twitched. Suki's whole body violently trembled, her back hunched, as she quickly clutched her chest with her hand. Then all of a sudden, she began to cough hoarsely.

Natsume looked at her in panic as blood started to splatter on her white cotton dress, his khaki shorts, and all over the opened book.

"Suki," Natsume placed a hand on Suki's shoulder.

"I'm fine, Natsume, just leave me alone…" she managed to say amidst her terrible coughing fit.

"No," he said firmly.

"Just get off my roof, Hyuuga."

"Not if you promise me you'd be alright."

Suki mashed her lips into a thin straight line. "Fine."

A light breeze blew through the rooftop, blowing through the pages of the book on Suki's lap. It stopped on a page on cherry blossoms.

Natsume gazed down at the page. Suki read the text aloud, "Cherry blossoms represent the cycle of life because of their short-blooming times. Falling blossoms are a metaphor for fallen warriors…" she trailed off.

Natsume felt an ache in his chest. He perfectly knew Suki was very brave in heart. She was a warrior who was already set in battle within the walls of Gakuen Alice at a very young age. And now, she was weakening, dying slowly, because of the pain they made her endure when she was in the Academy.

But Natsume had already set his mind on it, he wouldn't allow her life to get wasted.

"You'll be alright…" Natsume tried to comfort her in the best way he can. He placed a hand on Suki's and patted it.

Suki blinked twice, tears escaping from her sad gray eyes.

"I'll be, with you by my side."

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

Today, Suki had been absent from school for almost three weeks. Word around the town was that she got bedridden after a visit to the city doctor some days back. And since the city was a bit far from town, it was easily foreseen that Suki could get worn out, weaken, and get even sicker.

Natsume wound his arms tighter around Suki's school books their homeroom adviser told him to bring over at her house. He gladly obliged then, seeing it was a perfectly good reason to come over and see her.

Natsume stopped by the sidewalk, in front of Suki's house, a two-story with a perfectly-manicured lawn and pots of sunflowers and carnations. He walked to the pavement leading towards the doorway, ringing the doorbell as he reached the door.

Light, padded footsteps sounded towards the door as Natsume began to take off his shoes. The door slid open, revealing woman in a silk housedress. Her long, ebony black hair flowed to her lower back while she stared at Natsume with warm, motherly gray eyes. "Good afternoon, you must be Natsume. I'm Tsubaki's okaa-san, it's nice to meet you," she smiled.

For one thing, despite acting arrogant towards most people, Natsume was always taught to be polite to his elders at all times. He bowed as low as he can whilst carrying the heavy books in his arms, gave a small smile, and said, "Good afternoon, Yamatori-san, it's nice to meet you too. I came to bring these missed school works and exercises to Tsubaki," Natsume slightly choked at the last word, but kept his smooth expression nonetheless.

"Ah, yes, that's very thoughtful of you," she said sweetly, "Tsubaki's in her room, up the stairs, first door to the right," she added, somewhat distracted.

"Thank you, Yamatori-san," Natsume nodded. He stepped inside, the scent of sweet peas and jasmines taking him over. The smell of chicken soup wafted from the kitchen beside the wooden staircase. A room to his left seemed to be a small living room while at his left was the dining room. He also noticed that in every room corner, bouquets of assorted flowers in glass vases sat on a round, wooden table. Natsume inwardly smirked at the funny thought of how Suki really grew so fondly close to flowers

The narrow wooden staircase ran through the right side of the equally narrow hallway, numerous picture frames of family photos crowding at the wall beside it. Natsume stopped as he reached the top of the stairs.

More family photos, he smiled. He turned right and reached for the doorknob of the first room to the right. Natsume turned the doorknob, the books in his one arm precariously swaying. He pushed open the door, light shafting in the evidently dim room.

Lying on the bed, her head inclined towards the window was a very, very sick-looking Suki.

Her hands rested on either side of her, her chest weakly rising and falling. Suki's complexion was a pallid gray, almost matching to her lifeless ash gray eyes. The dark circles around her eyes grew more sunken, while her already frail body grew even thinner.

"Hey…" Natsume said weakly, as he set down the books on a nearby table.

"Natsume!" Suki murmured happily. Her gray eyes grew brighter, a smile forming on her lips, "I missed you…" she added softly.

As Natsume inched closer to her, he noticed the book he gave her resting on her bedside table, which also had a small porcelain vase laden with flowers.

"Have a seat, and hand me the book will you," she gestured towards the book.

Natsume silently drew the wicker rocking chair from the corner of the room to Suki's bedside and sat down.

Suki coughed as she reached for an empty pill foil and closed it within the book. Natsume looked at it.

Seconds later, Suki opened the book, a red camellia now where the foil used to be. "The Japanese camellia, or the tsubaki, because you're perfect, I wish you good luck for whatever comes ahead, and I'm grateful to you…" she trailed off, the flower still in her hands.

"You've been reading the book… and the flower's red because…?"

"Because you're a flame in my heart," Suki weakly smiled.

Natsume paused, a lump forming in his throat. And without him knowing, he found his hand slowly reaching out for Suki's hand. He didn't stop it however, and let it stay there for a moment.

"You've missed a lot of school work when you were away, you better get started on them," Natsume changed the topic.

Suki feebly shook her head, smiling. "Never mind that, the last thing I want to do is to die from too much homework," she said jokingly.

Natsume stiffened. "You shouldn't say that."

Suki sighed, her head moving again towards the window. From outside, the sakura tree swayed gently with the early summer breeze, its petals notably changing from its white pink spring color to a darker shade.

"I want to see the usual Saturday sunrise, tomorrow, with you," she said wistfully.

"Fine."

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

The next day, Natsume sat perched by Suki's window on a branch of the sakura tree, a sad and grave aura emanating from him. It was 5:30 am, and they were awaiting daybreak on that quiet Saturday morning.

He opened the window. Suki's eyes fluttered open, her gray eyes more twinkling than before.

"Natsume, it's okay, you can stay by the window, I'll be fine here," she said as Natsume started walking towards her bed. This made him stop in his tracks, and head back towards the open window.

He sat on the windowsill, his feet easily propped on a flowerbox. He kept his eyes on the horizon, readying himself to signal the sunrise.

A single ray of a deep orange light broke through the silent dawn. Soon, a few more quickly followed.

"Suki…" called Natsume quietly.

"I'm up."

Something about that sunrise seemed different from all the Saturday sunrises he had shared with Suki. Maybe, it was the more vibrant color of the rays, or the fresher feel of the far-off pastures that made Natsume think it was different. Still, the usual stuff happened, with the yellow orange sun slowly rising up to take its throne on the sky, the dew drops on Suki's garden twinkling like tiny diamonds as soon as light hit them, and all.

For several minutes, Natsume sat quietly, Suki lying there just as quiet. The silent glory of the sunrise was soon coming to an end, like an orchestra capping off a simple, yet grand symphony. The receding midnight blue horizon getting seeped through by rays of golden orange light resembled a violin plucking its last few chords, while the numbered stars faintly twinkling was like a small triangle to Natsume, unnoticeably chiming away. A few birds flew east towards the sun, while Natsume's far-hearing ears heard the cows mooing from the grazing fields.

And with that, the sunrise was over.

"Natsume, thank you, for being my friend – for everything…" Suki croaked.

"It's still a bit early, you go sleep now," Natsume muttered.

His crimson eyes met Suki's gray ones, watching them slowly hide behind heavy eyelids.

"Goodbye, Natsume" Suki softly murmured, the falling sakura petals outside her window increasing in number.

"Bye," said Natsume, the gentle breeze blowing pale pink blossoms into Suki's room as he left.

^_^ ^__^ ^_^

It's been two weeks since Yamatori Suki passed away.

But Natsume knew, that when she died, there was not a single cloud in the sky, the golden sun blossomed brightly in the sky, and she poured every last bit of her power to make a single bluebell bloom by the foot of their sakura tree as a sign of her gratitude towards Natsume, amidst the tall, yellow and red forest of tulips.

Natsume took a last look at her home. The bright and colorful garden now consisted of shriveled flower buds and several dried patches of grass. But despite that, a sakura tree stood tall, a steady flow of rosy pink blossoms continuously falling to the ground. It was once again another Saturday, but this time, Natsume clearly saw how less vibrant the rays of light have become – and how the rest of his sunrises were never going to be the same again.

He hitched his backpack higher, grasping little Aoi's hand tighter.

"Onii-san, where are we going to this time?" she brightly chirped.

"I don't know, but we're moving someplace else, somewhere far-off where the Gakuen Alice people won't find us," he replied.

Now with all these clearly challenging obstacles ahead, Natsume didn't know what was going to happen next. But his mind was calm, and his faith was strong, because he had Suki by his side no matter what.

The Hyuuga family kept walking, carrying their possessions with them. Natsume felt fine as they ambled on, Aoi lagging along with Natsume gripping her with one hand, a manga, a scarlet camellia and a fragile bluebell in the other.

**~ FIN ~

* * *

**

Phew, I felt really happy after I finished writing this earlier today. I'm on sem break, which mean I have a lot of time _and homework_ on my hands. Mikan's story is coming up, let's just hope I get to finish it before my sem break is over. Yosh!


	3. Mikan's Story

Ok, this one's particularly short, sorry about that... But I hope you take some time to read it anyway. (:

And hey, many thanks to those who favorited and reviewed my story, _You help me avoid getting stuck in that rut, _haha. :D

* * *

"_Who knew mooncake could make an old man so happy?"_

_- Taka Hironoya_

From behind her, her short brown pigtails flew. Sakura Mikan ran and ran, with nothing but the sheep knapsack bouncing on her back and a very, very important package in her hands.

In her great hurry, she didn't have time to see the big rock lying in front of her.

BLAG!

"Ow, ow, ow!" Mikan cried in pain. She sat down on the pavement.

She gently blew on her wounded knee, blood pouring out from the open cut as she kept blowing. Tears started to burn in her eyes, escaping from them a second later. She looked around for the package, but couldn't find it anywhere. She tried to stand up, but her scraped knee just wouldn't let her.

"Great! Now, I lost Jii-chan's present and got myself a booboo on my knee," she sobbed to herself, pitying herself greatly for what just happened to her. She bent her head low and continued to cry.

"Hey there, are you alright?" somebody's voice came up to her.

"N-no…"Mikan whimpered miserably. She slightly raised her head and looked at the stranger with teary, doe-like eyes.

"Hey, come on now. I'll get you a band-aid," a boy with windswept black hair and sparkling deep cornflower eyes smiled back at Mikan. He took of his backpack and rummaged for a band-aid.

"Here you go, this won't hurt one bit," he chirped as he peeled off a band-aid. He blew on Mikan's cut before dabbing it gingerly with a tissue. Mikan slightly flinched, but bit back another wince coming her way. Then carefully and surely, he pressed down the band-aid on her knee.

"Ow, thanks, you're awfully kind," Mikan hiccupped.

"Aw, that was nothing," the boy slightly blushed.

"Wh-what's your name, anyway?" Mikan asked him, wiping away her tears with the back of her hand.

"The name's Hironoya Takafumi, but you can call me Taka for short," he puffed his chest proudly.

Taka stood up and held out his hand to Mikan.

"I'm Sakura Mikan, Mikan for short," she giggled gaily as she took Taka's hand. Taka helped her up.

"Nice to meet you, Mikan," Taka grinned. He shook Mikan's hand. Mikan smiled sweetly, until an alarmed expression flickered through her face.

"Jii-chan's present! I almost forgot!" her hands flew up.

"Hey, look, somebody left an open box of mooncake on the sidewalk!" Taka pointed suddenly to a box lying by their feet.

"And I spent a whole month's allowance on that mooncake too!" Mikan said to herself in distress, too distracted to hear what Taka was saying. Her forehead scrunched up, and her eyes began to tear up again. She hung her head.

"Mmm…I like me some mooncake."

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

"Happy Birthday, Jii-chan!"

Ojii-chan's body stiffened, his eyes shooting open. "WHA - OVER MY DEAD BODY, THAT KAMIKAZEE DID NOT EXPLODE ON MY BEHALF! Wha – where am I?"

Mikan and Taka burst out laughing. Mikan set down a box beside her Jii-chan.

"Wha - ?!" Jii-chan muttered to himself, sitting up. He caught sight of two laughing children beside him.

"It's alright Jii-chan, we came to give you your present," Mikan chuckled, gesturing to the box in front of her.

"Eh? But my birthday was two weeks ago," Ojii-chan scratched his bald head.

Mikan and Taka shot a glance at each other, then burst out, "Belated Happy Birthday, Jii-chan!"

"Oh very well the – Hey! Why the heck are you calling me 'Jii-chan'? You're not my grandson!" he snapped at Taka.

"Jii-chan! Taka's that new friend I told you about the other day! Besides, you shouldn't get mad at him for surprising you like that, he bought you mooncake!" Mikan scolded her Jii-chan.

"It's bad enough that you kids go disturbing me from my little na – Did you say mooncake? Well then, I'm can't possibly finish this all by myself now?" said Ojii-chan placidly in his best grandfatherly tone as he rubbed his hands together and eyed the mooncake hungrily.

Mikan leaned towards her friend, "Actually, he can, but…" she whispered deprecatingly, "I think he likes you."

"Who knew mooncake could make an old man so happy?"

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

Drawing her knees to her chest, Mikan sat patiently and quietly beside Taka who was bent down, busy with something.

"Hey, are you almost done?" asked Mikan. She curiously eyed the thing Taka was busy with.

"Yup, almost…" Taka muttered.

Mikan picked up a piece of colored chalk from the box lying at Taka's feet and playfully fiddled with it.

Several artistic swipes, outlines, shades, and highlighting later, Taka sat down beside Mikan, wiping the sweat on his forehead with his shirt sleeve.

"You're finally done! Lemme see!" Mikan yelped happily. She stood up quickly.

"You think Mimi would like it?" said Taka, wistful.

Mikan stood there, enthralled. As Taka had drawn it, Mimi sat on a field of colorful flowers under a very blue sky. Her eyes studied the drawing on the sidewalk in front of her in awe, taking in every little detail of Taka's artwork, from the finely drawn clouds to the well-captured features of Mimi, Taka's little sister.

"I'm positive," Mikan beamed. She held out her hand to help Taka.

"Great then, I can't wait to show this to her, she'll be so happy!" Taka sniffed happily, his big, indigo-tinted eyes glimmering with glee.

Taka's mother's voice sounded from inside their house, calling the two children for lunch.

"Your Mama made dumplings right?" Mikan inquired expectantly.

Taka nodded. He draped an arm over Mikan's shoulder as they abruptly turned around and marched towards his house.

"And after lunch…" Mikan trailed off in cheerful anticipation. Taka caught on, and quickly attached a quick comment.

"We go get you that trombone!" his fist shot up into the air. Mikan laughed.

"Yosh!"

Yes, days spent in and out with him were really unlike any other.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

Fun-filled days of hill trekking, flower picking, hopscotch, and inimitable, not to mention unforgettable trombone lessons with Taka went by quick, and before they could know it, school bells started ringing as the first few autumn leaves fell to the ground.

The sun perched easily on the east side of the sky, newly-risen as Mikan ran along side Taka, their school bags rapidly bouncing on their backs. The crisp red leaves crunched noisily under their feet as they ran towards school, laughing away.

"I wonder who our new teacher is," Mikan brightly piped, her shoulder length chestnut brown hair did into two low braids flying wildly behind her as they went.

"Second-grade would be a new thing for us, and no matter what kind of teacher or classmates we get, we're unstoppable, remember?" Taka gazed over at Mikan intently. She abruptly came to a halt in front of the school yard, her hands reaching out to hold Taka's.

"From whatever comes our way, nothing can ever make us crumble," she replied resolutely, her tone sincere. Mikan felt her heart thumping loudly, her lungs out of breath. Her cheeks were burning and her hands were clammy, but everything felt fine as Taka was by her side, not out-of-reach.

The dark-haired boy of seven and a half clasped his hands tighter with Mikan's, his tone reassuring, "I'm sure of that too."

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

Short legs pushed themselves off the ground. Up and down.

"Mikan-chan, do you know why they call them 'buildings' when they've already finished building 'em?" Taka asked thoughtfully.

A memory of Hinata-sensei asking the same question earlier came to Mikan's mind, her thoughts rhythmically sounding themselves with the seesaw's creaking noises. Up and down.

Mikan shrugged. "I don't really know. Why'd you ask?" she vacantly answered back.

Two children carelessly bobbed away on a teeter-totter. Up and down.

"Nothing," said Taka quietly.

Mikan let her gaze fall upon Taka's eyes, glazed over with something doubtful…something secretive.

"Oh."

Simultaneously, they rose and dropped. Up and down.

Taka sucked in a deep breath, "Mimi's not been doing well lately, and Mama and Papa have been worried," he burst out, almost hesitant.

More than anything, Mikan very much hated it when Mimi was sick. She always seemed so grey and lifeless whenever Mikan would come see her in bed – something that just couldn't do. She rooted her feet below her. The seesaw stopped moving.

"I-I, could I-I visit her? Bring her some s-soup, make sure sh-she's a-alright?" she stuttered out, her hands growing clammier from their grip on the seat handle by the second.

"Mii-chan, remember what Hinata-sensei told us about…buildings?" Taka looked down.

Mikan plainly replied, "Yeah, they're giant towers made of cement and glass…"

"Cars and giant towers, Mama says those are the things I'd be seeing often next week and from then on."

Taka pushed his feet off the ground. Mikan almost wasn't able to hear the last thing he said – but she was still able to catch it nonetheless. Confusion clouded her clear mind, burning tears starting to sting from the back of her eyes. Mikan's feet stayed stuck to the ground.

"Wha – what are you talking about?"

"I'm sorry, Mikan, we're moving away to Tokyo, to get Mimi checked," he said, contrite.

And then she got it. This time, Mikan saw different.

Betrayal started to swirl itself within her confused mind, the words traitor flashing out in big, red letters right in front of her eyes. She felt this heavy urge to cry, letting it win her over the moment big, fat tears spilled from glassy brown eyes.

"You, y-you said n-nothing c-can separate us… Y-you said w-we we're unstoppable… Taka, w-what's h-happening n-now?" she ruptured out, heat coming to her face.

"I'm sorry Mikan! I'm really sorry!"

"You're a traitor! I-I, j-just leave me alone!" she cried furiously.

Immediately, her tight grasp removed itself from the seesaw handle. Mikan got up quickly, and ran off, her tears streaming down on her flushed cheeks.

The only weight on the seesaw; Taka's weight, sank to the ground. Down.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

It was a pleasant early Saturday morning, and the sky was gold. Outside, incessant sounds of a bristled broom brushing off crunchy autumn leaves and hard pavement broke the silence of fresh daybreak.

Today, seven year-old Hironoya Takafumi sat silently beside a figure, while it also happened to be the date of their family's departure to Tokyo.

The figure lying down on the cot stirred, making Taka stiffen uncomfortably. This was the only chance he was going to get – he had to do it now.

Careful not to wake her up, Taka bent down and kissed her cheek.

He wasn't ready to say goodbye just yet. He took a little box out of his pocket and set it down quietly beside the sleeping figure.

Taking out a marker, he wrote on the lid of the small box: _Keep smiling; it's the thing that will keep us strong._

Now he was ready.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

As usual, winter brought about its cold emptiness as freezing days spent indoors with steaming hot cups of tea and hot chocolate drearily dragged on. This wintertime had been a very harsh one in particular too, as it only allowed children to go out and enjoy a fluffy, white snow day for a meager span of three days.

At times like this were the moments Ojii-chan would become so serious, as if remembering something very memorable yet painful. And it was at times like this when Mikan would just sit down by his side and watch him stare off into the distance in deep thought for the whole day.

And unwillingly, Mikan feels this very strange twinge piercing and lashing and stabbing at her heart too.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

Odd as it may seem, that all the coldest icicles and most bitter winds could disappear in a night, spring held its many wonders like no other season of the year. Filled to the brim with varieties of colorful blossoms and incomparable warmth, it always had enough power to melt glaciers and stone-hard hearts. Teeming with fresh green beauty at almost any place it can manage to seep through, birds chirp along with the calm melodies of its mild winds.

To many, it was a time for flower blooms and groundhogs, but to others, it was a time for newly born hope – for change.

And as Sakura Mikan stood there, very much certain of what she was about to do, she tightened her clutch on the little box in her hands. She bent down and opened the box. Lying on a bed of multi-colored chalk pieces, she picked up a fine shade of navy blue, and started drawing.

There, Mikan bent down and drew and drew to her heart's content.

^_^ ^__^ ^_^

At the arrival of noon, she straightened up and sat back to admire her work.

Traced in between the drawing of a two smiling children, one a little girl in pigtails and the other a little boy with striking blue eyes holding hands by a schoolyard were the words "_We are invincible with a smile" _– right on the sidewalk where they first met.

**~ FIN ~

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Was that one good? I don't usually come up with good stories if only Mikan is in the picture... What d'ya think?

P.S. Ruka's story up. (:


	4. Ruka's Story

So finally, I have here the final story for my series of first grade romaces. (I know the third story wasn't really good, but I'm planning to edit that one, so don't worry)

This one is Ruka's, so it's kind of like an early Chirstmas gift to Ruka fans and advocates everywhere. Oh yehes.

* * *

"_Last night I lay in bed looking up at the stars in the sky and I thought to myself, 'Where the heck is the ceiling?!'" _

_-Minami Toyota_

"Ruu-chaan!" a shrill voice sang called to him from downstairs. It was his mother, calling him awake for the umpteenth Saturday in a row. At times like this, he knew it paid to go for the 'cover-your-head-with-a-pillow-to-block-out-your-mom's-wake-up-call' tactic.

"Nogi Ruka, you get your sleepy bum down here this instant!" she beckoned again, the heat apparently escaping from her firm tone. Ok, this time, she was definitely serious.

But it was a Saturday, for crying out loud!

Groaning, Ruka sluggishly rolled out of bed and fell with a soft thud on the floor. He opened his mouth to answer back, but only found himself snoring the moment he did.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

Ruka felt something nudge his side gently. He ignored this and continued to sleep until a pair of hands firmly grabbed him by the shoulders and started shaking him about violently.

"Ruu-chan, oh my Ruu-chan, are you alright?!" his mother cried. She pulled him into a rib-breaking bear hug.

"M-mama…wha - ?" Ruka blinked sleepily, choking subconsciously at his gradually increasing difficulty in breathing.

"Oh Ruka, for a second there, I thought I was going to lose you to a coma," she whimpered dramatically, her bone-crushing grip on Ruka still not slackening. She rubbed his back and stroked his hair.

And that was when his eyes shot wide open.

"M-m-ma-ma, c-can't b-b-breeeeath…" he wheezed breathlessly. He struggled and started to push his mother off of him as his face started to turn into a flushed shade of blue, a thing that didn't go unnoticed by his mother.

She quickly let go and let him fall into a helpless heap on her lap. "Well, well, this just won't do…That's the third – "

"Seventh."

"Seventh false alarm this week, I'm truly sorry Ruu-chan," she said apologetically, picking up her son by his arm.

Ruka faked a smile.

"Oh my!" she brought a hand over her mouth, "I almost forgot about your playdate with little Toyota Minami, she's waiting right downstairs!"

Ruka's mother abruptly stood up, wheeling her startled son out his bedroom door and down the teak-paneled staircase, where they were soon greeted by a girl in braids and a pink winter coat, sitting at the foot of the stairs.

"Ruu-chan, I'd like you to meet Toyota Minami-chan," she acknowledged the girl sweetly as she pushed Ruka lightly towards her.

"Hello there, Ruu-chan," the girl giggled slightly at the funny pet name, "I'm Honda Minami, but you can freely call me Minami-chan any time you may feel like it," her cheeks flushed slightly to match the light rose color of her coat. She held out a hand Ruka shook distractedly.

"I-it's nice to meet you too, Minami-chan," replied Ruka shyly.

"Now, now, Ruka, you play nice with Minami-chan, ok?" she said, then added as a sugar-coated afterthought, "And you better get along with her since she's the daughter of your papa's boss too, ok?"

Ruka nodded absentmindedly, enabling him to catch a glimpse of what he was wearing. His eyes bugged.

"Go along now, your mama still has work to do," she warmly dismissed the two children, towing them off towards the open front doors that lead into a bright and pleasant snow day.

"M-mama?"

"Yes, Ruu-chan?"

"Could I change out of my pajamas first?" he sputtered awkwardly, turning bright red at that instant.

Ruka noticed Minami's eyes travel down to gaze at his duck-printed pajamas and the stifled giggle that came after. From directly behind her, he suddenly noticed the two muscular men in black coats and black-tinted shades looming ominously towards them.

Minami rolled her eyes; just the perfect tint of aquamarine, and drawled blithely, "Not now, you guys."

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

"It needs shape, not sequins."

She scooped up another good deal of snow in her one hand, mashing it flat with the other afterwards. She held out her hand. Ruka shook his head. Minami tipped her head and absently let the colorless slush fall and blend in with the fluffy white mass blanketing the ground.

"Keep trying," Ruka paused to bend down and gather a heap of the flurry rime he patted in his gloved hands, "and you might end up with something like this." He held out a roughly shaped snowball in his hand. Minami huffed warily.

"_No, this was living as it arched and twisted, fingering out to the road and reaching for me like the shade of a beloved friend. There was white inside, trying to seep out of pores, I felt it strain trying to mesh and meld with this sentient wraith fingers touching, joining and suddenly…" _Minami recited, eyeing the cold sphere resting on her friend's hand.

Ruka looked puzzled, to which Minami plainly replied, "_Reaching for White _by Lisa Fields."

Perplexed, Ruka answered in the best way he can. "I think Minami-chan is going to become my beloved friend as well."

A small smile graced Minami's endearing features, quickly followed by a quirk of her button nose. Then she sneezed.

Ruka laughed lightly, casually draping an arm over Minami in an attempt to get her warm.

"Wait." She wriggled free of his arm and slipped out of sight. Ruka looked around, dazed.

_Sloosh!_

Ruka felt a frosty, soft and moist kind of force hit the back of his head. He turned back 'round only to get hit squarely on the forehead with another snowball.

"That was for touching me without any permission from Gregory and Ringo," she taunted.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

Rearranging the sheet music on its stand, she straightened herself as she readied herself to start. From beside her, Ruka squirmed in eager anticipation and held in a deep breath.

Her fingers moved along the ebony and ivory keys, sounding out each note with confident and graceful finesse. The song started out jolly, gaily playing along at each measure. Smiling, Ruka simply watched in fascination as her hands somewhat seemed to make magic at the keyboard. His heart felt like it was about to leap, the bright, syncopated notes taking an inebriating hold on him.

But then, the piece changed tone.

Melancholy resonated out from the keys, the slow, gloomy pitches ringing within the suddenly dead silence of the vast room. Outside the double-glass doors, the birds stopped humming their own late winter melodies and seemed to listen in on the glum pace the piece had suddenly taken on. From the way she played it, it sounded as though her heart poured out every little pain and fear it was ever forced to bear.

_The happiness ended too soon_, Ruka thought dejectedly to himself, just as he remembered more things that made him somber.

On a grave note, a deep and anxious loneliness festered from deep inside him. Painfully, he was evoked of his early childhood blues, insecurities, weaknesses, and his Alice which brought endless worries and problems to his family – a matter that rebuked him the most.

Beside him, Minami paused. Ruka quickly turned to her in question.

And then she reached out across him, and grabbed for her music score. Quickly setting aside the current page to the back of the pile of music sheets, she placed it back again, and started playing to the librettos of the new score that faced them.

Enchanting yet soft, it was a welcoming embrace of relief from the previous. Though not as jovial or gleeful like the introductory part, it sang like the hopeful anticipation that every person had as they waited for spring to come. Rhythmic eighth notes and harmonic chords seeped like the delightful warmth you usually got when you bit into a freshly-baked cookie. It ended on a calm and soothing chime that didn't hang nor exaggerate, suddenly making realization dawn on Ruka.

He was no longer lonely, because he had her. With their days spent in carefree lightness, she made him feel what it felt like to be genuinely happy. The music – but more importantly she – made him glad.

"Look Ruka," Minami rose from her seat and walked out the double-glass doors that led to the balcony in a nimble stride, "It's spring."

The fact made Ruka smile.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

Jumping over a stray branch, Ruka quickly ran. His concentration was fixed on the path forward, and he was certainly bent on reaching his destination in time. Once in a while, he cast a glance over his shoulder to make sure his pursuer wasn't looming close by.

And then he caught sight of the clearing straight ahead of him, making him speed up and add an extra boost to his every step. The heavy panting drew closer, and he stopped.

"I told you to take those shoes off already!" he turned around and called out to no one in particular sight.

"Alright," a soft voice spoke in resignation from behind a nearby tree trunk. Stepping out timidly from where she stood, Minami looked dubiously at him. Ruka nodded.

She shrugged, and almost too gladly, kicked off her leatherette doll shoes and took a few, big paces to where Ruka was.

Ruka took her hand, leading her into a small forest opening that was carpeted by wild grass and flowers, surrounded by many bushes, shrubs, and trees.

Minami stood under a partition of the leafy, forest canopy where the sunlight shone through, making her dark mahogany hair glint fine colors of red and gold. Set in a round, rosy face, her light blue-green eyes glimmered curiously, but spelled out anxiety the entire long.

The blonde boy of seven and a half, sensing fear, spoke out serenely, "It's ok, you guys, Minami won't hurt you."

And as if by cue, squirrels and rabbits hesitantly peered out from their burrowing holes, and several birds flocked towards them, while a fawn and bear cub shyly peeped from the bush beside Minami. Following suddenly were three elms and a huge bear that growled lowly from behind a floral overgrowth.

Ruka heard her gasp from beside him, but only said, "It's fine, they're my friends."

"B-but, the bears in this forest were rumored to at-ttack – "her eyes grew wide open as she took sight of the large grizzly that was making its way towards them, swallowing thickly.

"Only because they were hunters that wanted to hurt the animals," Ruka pointed out in defense of his forest friends.

"I-I, Ruu-chan, wha - ?"

"Minami," he breathed in slowly, readying himself for the impact of his next statement, "I'm an Alice."

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

Spring, what with its mild weather, blossoms and early semester classes, eventually passed way for the lazy, dog-gone summer days that were always spent in the cool, green refuge of the forest in the mornings and early afternoons and in the lush wildflower meadows in sluggish late afternoons, which were right away followed by sunsets spent on Minami's balcony. They had the most fun times together, seeing as they were both made blissful and contented in each other's company. For a while, everything went and flowed through finely until setbacks were formed and things got into some complications.

Soon enough, because of Minami's continual absences from her etiquette lessons, – that taught and lectured her on everything from right lady-like manners and conducts to the tricks-of-the-trade in running her family's business – her parents started getting concerned about how life by the countryside would possibly leave Minami's future stricken and ill-influenced. It imposed as an eminent threat to them, especially to her father, which left them to determining out their future plans all of a sudden.

And because of this, a bit too unexpectedly, their family announced their departure for Europe – much to the surprise of their only child, Minami.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

Sharp, incessant taps thudded against the wall of his bedroom as Nogi Ruka tried to sleep off the growing foreboding that gnawed at his insides. The bumping sounds really did freak him out a lot, quite especially since he could've sworn he caught a glimpse of long, dreadful, and terrifying arms flailing frantically from the shadows that were illuminated by the nightlight by his door.

And then, he heard something hard hit loudly against the glass of his windows. His eyes widened in fright.

"Ruka! Pst, Ruka!" a voice hissed outside his window, a place Ruka didn't dare go near to.

"Psst, Ruu-chan, it's Minami! Come on, open up." He scrambled out from under the safety of his blankets and bolted towards his window. Ruka looked out to see Minami, in a snug, velveteen jacket, grinning at him as she stood there in his backyard.

"I wanna go somewhere, just you and me. Come on!" she beckoned sweetly, surprising Ruka at the lateness of the hour she was inviting him out.

Reluctantly, Ruka gazed over her. Her face looked sincere and confident, almost having that rebellious streak of breaking _some _her rules and curfew for the first time, but worry and unhappiness seemed to be etched there lightly as Ruka looked at her more.

"A-alright, but let me get my sweater first."

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

Lying down, Ruka carefully studied Minami's calm expression, her eyes reflecting the exact same twinkle the stars held. The aged and dusty wooden floorboards creaked noisily as his weight pressed down on them.

"This place was where my grandparents used to live," she began suddenly. Ruka looked around. Deserted and dreary, only a few of its furnishings remained, all covered with sheets that had already yellowed and faded to gray. Truly, it didn't stand a chance against time as cobwebs and grime began to gather at every nook and cranny imaginable, as parts of its walls and ground had given way too.

"Why – wh-what happened, then?" Ruka prodded with sober inquisition.

"They…they died in a car accident, four years ago. I was only three and a half."

Ruka propped himself on one elbow and looked over at his friend in empathy, "I'm sorry to hear."

"It's ok. I guess now, now that I think about it, the only reason stopping me from going to this house which still really reminds me of the good times I spent together with my Gramps and Grammy were just Gregory and Ringo," said Minami, blinking twice as if to stop any tears threatening to come out.

But then, she showed a wobbly grin and cracked out, "Last night I lay in bed looking up at the stars in the sky and I thought to myself, _'Where the heck is the ceiling?!'_" They both laughed, just as lightheartedly as before.

"Hm, good point," he murmured as he dipped his head towards the wide open hole on the roof, "Where'd you get that one?" Ruka mused.

"Nah, just made up that one," said Minami, tongue-in-cheek.

Chuckling, Ruka nodded and lied back down, looking up at the pin-pricked stars that shimmered in the sky like a million fireflies and the full moon that seemed to only illuminate at its most radiant peak during the latest hours of the night. Once again, the atmosphere between them became heavy and tense. It felt uncomfortably awkward to Ruka, just as his mouth began to go dry and the words he wanted to say got stuck in his throat.

"Ruka, what if I tell you that they're making me leave for Europe tomorrow?" Minami suddenly spoke up, a strain evident in her voice. She dipped her head towards Ruka.

A dozen agonizing emotions flitted through his chest, but didn't show in his face. He kept his face blank, and simply replied back, looking at his friend beside him, "Minami, what if I ask you what's going to happen next after you leave?"

Minami's bottom lip quavered, "Ruu-chan…"

"I don't think that there's anything we could do to change what our parents want for us. Mama always said that whatever they did was for our own good, so that's what I grew up to believe in – that what they say goes," Ruka elucidated, though a dull ache from inside him told him otherwise.

"I won't be sure if you think of it that way, or what, but all I want is…"

"Minami-san, please take care of yourself when I'm not around anymore," Ruka solemnly stated.

"Look, Ruka, when I leave…" she started, only to have her words drowned out by a few more from Ruka.

"If you could, you make as many friends as you can and just smile – everyday, ok?" he told her.

Minami gripped Ruka's hand.

Then he added as a final word, "Then if ever you get lonely, like me, just remember that we're both under the same sky, no matter how much far away or if where you live it'll be morning when it's nighttime here."

Lacing her fingers tighter with his, she interceded, "I may not know what may happen to me when I leave, but I'd just like you to know that however it may come out to be, I'll reach for my dreams and won't let my parents order me around so much anymore. When that day comes, I'll definitely go back and look for you. But for now, all I want is for you to find a friend that could set you free and make you feel what you made me feel too," she smiled, then continued quietly, "I want you to be happy Ruka."

She looked so dazzling in the moonlight, with her dark mahogany hair let down, allowing them to spill in soft waves over her shoulder and onto the floor, while her aquamarine eyes seemed just as deep as ever.

Putting his other hand atop their already intertwined ones, he said, "Me too, I want you to be happy, Minami – just like your piano pieces and melodies."

"And… One last thing…" Minami moved her gaze away from his eyes and into the speckled night sky.

"Yes?"

"Could I still be your friend in the morning even if you wake up without me beside you tomorrow?" she asked intently, obviously asking for his most honest answer.

"Of course."

With that, Minami nestled her head against Ruka's shoulder, and dozed off into a deep slumber. Not awhile later, Ruka fell asleep too, joining his friend in a peaceful sleep.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

That morning, just as Minami foresaw it, Ruka woke up without her by his side. Though he didn't bother looking for her since she knew she might have been halfway around the world or somewhere else at that time, he couldn't help but feel a foreboding emptiness that got harder to fight by the minute.

He flexed the fingers that were once laced with Minami's just that night, and wearily got up as he rubbed his eyes. He was in for with his Mama, but he couldn't really care about it more than the fact that he had once again been deserted and left alone. Ruka's shoulders slumped and slowed down as he trudged down the old creaky staircase and out the termite-eaten door that looked like it was ready to get blasted off its hinges any time now.

Ruka, now out, bowed his head low and made his way back home, morose.

^_^ ^_^ ^_^

After a brief scolding from his mother, Ruka got up to his room and closed the door gently closed the door behind him, apparently not in the mood to mope about and slam all sorts of things.

And then, a chirp sounded from the far corner of his room, right where the window was located. Abruptly turning, he dashed towards his window and there saw a cage that had a little hummingbird inside.

The bird itself was aquamarine, which reminded Ruka of Minami's eyes, with hints of several colors from the spectrum and beady, little eyes that seemed to stare in its own small intensity.

Ruka stood there, puzzled, then lifted the cage by its handle, only to have a small letter fall out from what seemed to be inside the cage and drop by his feet. He picked it up and read:

_To Ruu-chan,_

_ Here's a friend for you. Be happy. – Minami_

^_^ ^__^ ^_^

Ruka stood by his windowsill, carefully undoing the lock on the door of the little hummingbird's cage. Then he opened the window and let the cage sit there with its door ajar.

"Go on, then, you're free," Ruka murmured. The bird only turned to him quizzically, slightly cocking its head.

Ruka opened the cage door wider and set the cage nearer to the window. Then he whistled and immediately, a dozen little hummingbirds flocked by his open window, stopping to scrutinize the bird left in his cage.

But the bird, however, remained unmoving, afraid almost. Soon, the wild, free birds flew away one by one except for a black and red one that looked down at Ruka's hummingbird almost tauntingly.

Ruka could only help but watch a glaring battle ensue between the two animals, just until the wild bird gave one mocking tweet and flew away haughtily.

And before long, Ruka's little hummingbird followed too. It flew after the last, acerbic hummingbird that dwelled long enough to goad it to fly away and be free. Now, that's just exactly how it was.

Sitting by the windowsill, Ruka lifted his head up to the sky and closed his eyes, all the while getting a brief memory of his encounter with Natsume Hyuuga on that day.

_I am happy._

**~THE END~

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**Author's note:**

Some parts of this fic have been relatively fun to write. Thank you for the three week journey. :) And thanks for the reviews too. (I have now decided to incorporate this super short A.N. because I roll like tha'.) Though I've once again received the minimal count of revs, I would take this as an opportunity to improve on my work even more. Again, thank you for the loyal supporters. :) (I shall mention your names when I have the time) In the meantime, I'm going to bed. XP It's really late (typed as of Dec. 5, 2009 - 12:51 am), and I'm not so sure if I've got this checked thoroughly you could be kind enough, I'd really appreciate that you point out my errors so that I could be able to do something about them. Yeah, that's all. XD

Haha, 'til after my pile of homework guys,

Foxtrotelly


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